A 25-minute focus ritual with a radio
Tune, set the timer, put the phone face down. A simple way to start work without picking a playlist.
Starting is the hardest part of focused work. Here is a small ritual that uses Dial to get over it.
1. Tune by hand
Open a receiver and turn the knob slowly. Let the static run for a second before you land on a station. That half-minute of tuning is a signal to yourself that work is about to begin.
2. Set the room
Slide the ambience up until the room is just under the music. Rain and café murmur hide small noises around you better than silence does.
3. Start a 25-minute focus timer
Pick Focus, leave it at 25 minutes and press Start. With Plus you can stretch it to 60. Turn the phone face down. Dial keeps playing with the screen locked.
4. Stop when the chime says so
When the soft chime sounds, stop, even mid-sentence. Stand up, then tune to a different station for the next block. The change of station is your break.
For the evening, switch to Sleep and let the receiver turn itself off.